


5 Things Bruce Is Good At, and One Thing He's Bad At

by ChibiYoda



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Science Boyfriends, Science Bros, This Is My Ship and It Has Wrecked Me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-05
Updated: 2014-10-05
Packaged: 2018-02-19 23:53:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2407526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChibiYoda/pseuds/ChibiYoda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by this anonymous prompt on Avengerkink:</p>
<p>"Any/Bruce 5 Things Bruce is insanely good at  ... and one thing he is insanely shit at.</p>
<p>Would like if one of the things he's really good at is sucking cock, the rest could be anything from speaking another language to yoga or juggling or decorative pumpkin carving...seriously anything is fine.<br/>Same goes for the one thing he is really bad at, it could be driving or spelling or whatever.<br/>Preferred pairing is Bruce/Tony, with Tony loving that Bruce is good at somethings, but finding that he's really rubbish at something sort of adorable. Can be any pairing though."</p>
            </blockquote>





	5 Things Bruce Is Good At, and One Thing He's Bad At

Bruce had settled onto the sofa in the common area of the penthouse. The leather was so soft, he felt as if he was sitting on a cloud. He could get used to this, he thought, if he stayed long enough. That was a mighty big 'if' to wrestle with, though.

He came across a Travel Channel program spotlighting India. Had it already been two months since he'd left? Images of plush hotels, lush beaches and beautiful temples flooded the screen. But that wasn't the India of his memories. Elephant polo? No, he'd never seen that where he had been. The first thing that came to mind when he reminisced about it, or any of the other places he'd been, rather than an image, was a feeling. Loneliness. It was a part of his life for so long, it had become his way of life.

He then realized that he hadn't felt lonely in weeks. It was impossible to feel lonely when you lived under the same roof as Tony.

Abruptly torn from his thoughts, Bruce smiled as a lethargic Tony trudged into the room, and flopped onto the recliner nearby.

"Women." Tony blurted out. "I mean, Pepper's great and all, and my vast empire would crumble without her - heck, I would have crumbled years ago without her - but geez, give the girl a little more responsibility, and it's all nag, nag, nag. 'Tony sign this.' 'Tony go to this meeting.' 'Tony don't insult the shareholders.' " He threw his hands in the air dramatically, then quieted. "Do you know we tried an actual relationship, she and I?" 

Bruce cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Didn't work, though. She wanted to change too many things that were fundamentally me. It wasn't a good fit. She's got enough on her plate without having to deal with me on an emotional level. Ah, better for her, but too bad for me. She was probably my last chance at having some sort of grownup relationship."

"Oh, I doubt that." Bruce replied sincerely.

Tony shrugged his shoulders, then continued. "Hey, I'm sorry for always talkin' your ear off like this, but you're a good listener."

It was the least Bruce could do.

 

***

 

"JARVIS, where's Bruce?"

"Dr. Banner is currently in his suite."

Tony huffed. "You guys go ahead. I'll go get him." He sent the rest of the team off to the restaurant to claim their table.

Never occurring to him to knock, Tony entered the suite. He immediately spotted Bruce tucking his shirt into his pants. "I know it's hard to stuff all that sexy into those clothes, but you need to get a move on." He smirked as Bruce's fingers slipped from the zipper. Then Tony noticed something, or somethings, else. Plants. These weren't here the last time he was here. "What's with all this?" he motioned to them.

"Oh, well, I've got a few herbs to use for cooking, some African Violets for color, and just some assorted plants that caught my eye." Bruce shrugged. "I like to grow things. It kind of comes natural to me."

"So, you've got a green thumb no matter which form you're in." Tony stated flatly.

"I'm going to forget you said that." If it had been anyone else, he would have been annoyed. But it was Tony, and Bruce had quickly mastered the art of distinguishing whether his comments were insult or endearment.

 

Two days later, Bruce found himself being dragged to the roof of the tower by an overly enthusiastic Tony. As they rounded a corner, Bruce's jaw dropped.

"Now you can grow whatever you want." Tony declared.

Tony had created a green space for Bruce. Quite a large space at that.

"Tony...this is beautiful. You didn't have to do this." Bruce was surprised and pleased, sprinkled with a dash of patented guilt.

"Anything for you Bruce. You should know that by now."

And now Bruce was puzzled. Tony's words were so sincere, and his expression so serious, and it kind of looked like he was going to...

Tony leaned toward Bruce.

...kiss him.

Which lead to...

"Christ Banner, not that I haven't been thinking about this for weeks, but..." He was denied finishing his thought as Bruce all but devoured his mouth.

Bruce had Tony pinned to the bed. After a few intense minutes of introducing their mouths to one another, he finally released Tony's lips, and began to crawl backwards. The engineer was about to complain, until he realized what Bruce had in mind.

Within moments of Bruce's mouth enveloping his ready, willing and quite able cock, Tony discovered another of Bruce's talents.

 

***

 

It was a gala to celebrate the Avengers defeat of Loki and his extra-terrestrial army. Tony and Bruce were the first of the team to arrive. In the middle of the crowded room, Tony basked in the limelight, while Bruce tried in vain to shrink from it. Tony attempted to calm him. 

"Hey, how 'bout a dance?" He figured that this would be a chance to get his arms around Bruce, prop him up, transfer a little strength to him.

Bruce shrugged. "Ok."

Tony led the way to the dance floor. When he turned to take Bruce into his arms, he was quite shocked to find that Bruce was choosing to take over. He proceeded to waltz a clearly fascinated Tony around that dance floor like a boss.

"Where'd you pick this up? Let me guess, the monastery?" Tony joked as they swayed together.

Bruce chuckled. "I can't say there was much dancing there. But one thing I did learn during my stay, was to listen to the rhythm of the life around me."

Tony stared at him. He had no comeback, no witty retort. All he could do was admire.

The music ended, bringing them out of their reverie. Almost instantly, Bruce remembered where he was. The confidence of a few moments ago dissipated. They zig-zagged their way off of the dance floor, and settled near the bar.

"I'm sorry. I'm just not accustomed to this kind of attention yet." Bruce tried to keep his composure, and at least pretend that he didn't want to retreat to the nearest dimly lit corner.

Tony placed a hand on the small of Bruce's back. "Hey, we're having a good time, right? Hell, I was just swept off my feet by the most gorgeous guy here. I'm sure having a good time."

Bruce rolled his eyes. "Don't exaggerate. I don't think I'm capable of sweeping anybody anywhere. And face it, " he motioned from his shoulder to his toes, "you're the one who can pull off a tuxedo, not me."

Tony sighed. Bruce was oblivious to his own beauty. Wouldn't even dream of giving himself the benefit of the doubt. And he completely sucked at taking a compliment. Tony was going to have to work on that with him.

Bruce began to get fidgety. Fortunately, a distraction presented itself. Or rather, herself. Bodies parted like the Red Sea as Natasha entered with Clint on one arm, and Steve on the other. Her midnight blue gown shimmered as she moved. They joined Tony and Bruce.

"Hello Stark." Natasha nodded, then turned to Bruce. She smiled warmly, and looked him up and down. "My goodness Bruce, you certainly clean up well."

Bruce, bless his heart, shuffled his feet and tugged at his bow tie...and blushed nearly as red as Nat's hair. "Well...nowhere as well as you." He ended up directing his response to the area of the floor around her feet.

Tony watched the exchange, unaware of the stupid grin on his face, but acutely aware of his good fortune.

And this was perhaps the one thing that Bruce was best at...melting Tony's heart.

**Author's Note:**

> Written in August 2013.


End file.
